£CHING: ICANN bags $357m from 1,930 dot-word domains

Companies have rushed to file for top level domain names including .wang, .ketchup and .dog. A total of 1,930 applications for the new top level domains were filed, ICANN revealed yesterday as it published the list of applications. The name registry company will have scooped in $357m from the name sale, after charging $185,000 per application.

Companies can expect to cough up a whole lot more dollars if the names that they wanted are disputed – as many of them are. The dispute resolution panels charge by the hour and costs for a three-person panel run to $70,000 to $122,000 (or more), the bills payable by the losing bidders.

The controversial digital archery process used to batch the applications for evaluation is explained here, and is also likely to be a pricey process.

Apple have applied for only one TLD: .apple, while 13 different companies have applied for .app – including Google and Amazon.

Google and Amazon are also fighting it out for .free and .book.

Google has made over 100 applications for names including .chrome and .google but also .boo .foo .dog .eat and .lol. The American Bible Society face no competition for .bible. The Vatican – or rather the Pontifical Council for Social Communication – has plumped for .catholic and nine applicants are fighting it out over .blog, including Google and BET Inc.

CERN is going for .cern, and less high-minded applicants are going for .ketchup, .porn and .fail. L'Oreal wants to claim .skin and Johnson & Johnson are after .baby.

Microsoft has gone for a straightforward selection: .office and .windows, .skype and .xbox.

Amazon is looking to scoop .kids and .books as well as .kindle and .like and .room.

Meanwhile, Zodiac Leo Ltd has applied for .wang.

ICANN expects the first new domains to come online in the first months of 2013. ®